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CNN’s The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper was a hit with the demo audience.Read More

Gall’s Law is appropriately simple:

    “A complex system that works is invariably found to have evolved from a simple system that worked. A complex system designed from scratch never works and cannot be patched up to make it work. You have to start over with a working simple system.”

This is why sudden change rarely is, and why persistence and user feedback end up changing the systems that run our world.

Begin.

Learn.

Succeed.

Then add complexity.

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This week on Adspeak, we talk to Mikey Mohr, CEO of Houseplant, a cannabis product company that he co-founded with Hollywood actor Seth Rogen and producer Evan Goldberg. The three are part of ADWEEK’s Brand Genius class of 2025. Read More

Motorsports sponsorship has evolved and CPGs like Allegra are finding creative ways to justify the investment, even though getting into F1 has way more hurdles compared to working with other major sports leagues like the NFL or MLB.Read More

At ADWEEK House’s Raceway activation at Formula One’s Las Vegas Grand Prix, execs from Google, EA Sports, Amazon discussed the next era of fan engagement.Read More

American Eagle is ending an eventful year with an unexpected star for its holiday campaign: ultimate host and tastemaker, Martha Stewart. Wearing jeans in a denim-hued dreamscape, Stewart is on […]Read More

Disney had the largest share increase, with all of its properties recording month-to-month increases.Read More

The deal measures the MovieSphere FAST channel and MovieSphere Gold digital network.Read More

The publisher, which cut 40% of its staff this spring, has shifted from seeking new funding to weighing acquisition offersRead More

Of course, a book with a title like this gives us pause–when we think of marketers, we don’t ordinarily think about Jerry, Phil, Bobby and the rest of the crew.

But that’s one reason why the insights are so profound.

Marketing isn’t hype or hustle or scamming. It’s not spam or manipulation either. We already have words for those things.

Marketing is the generous act of showing up with a true story that helps people get to where they’d like to go.

And the stories are at the heart of what we think of when we consider the Dead. The intentional choices. Choices about fans, tours, records, the radio and most of all, the community. Work that matters for people who care.

While it’s tempting to make every marketing lesson about Apple or Starbucks, it’s the lessons we learn from the Grateful Dead that are most applicable to a typical project. The smallest viable audience, the purple cow, the tribe and the persistence to build an actual brand, not just a logo.

The thing is, these aren’t marketing secrets. They’re marketing choices.

Instead of making average stuff for average people, the Grateful Dead decided to focus on the people who wanted to get on the bus.

The book is highly recommended. You can even listen to music while you’re reading it.

Also worth a read: Lose Your Mind, a useful take on creativity.

PS This is Strategy is 50% off this week.

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